A file photo from 1994 shows Darren Sandberg. Sandberg has been identified as the Orange County Sheriff's deputy who shot Marine Sgt. Manuel Loggins on Feb. 7 after Loggins crashed his SUV through a gate at San Clemente High School. The shooting is under investigation.

Sheriff's investigators work near a GMC SUV which has a school gate wedged underneath it. The driver, Marine Sgt. Manuel Loggins, drove through a gate and into San Clemente High School parking lot early Feb. 7 and shot by Deputy Darren Sandberg. The circumstances of the shooting are being investigated, but it is known that Loggins' daughters, 14 and 9, were in the car at the time.

Marine Sgt. Manuel Loggins, right, was shot and killed Feb. 7 in an deputy-involved shooting in San Clemente. he circumstances of the shooting are being investigated, but it is known that Loggins' daughters, 14 and 9, were in the car at the time. The deputy has been identified as Darren Sandberg, a 15-year veteran of the department.

Orange County Sheriff's deputies conduct their investigation Feb. 7 near where the traffic stop was made at San Clemente High School. A Marine, Sgt. Manuel Loggins, stationed at Camp Pendleton was shot and later died.

The deputy who shot a Camp Pendleton Marine in the San Clemente High School parking lot Feb. 7 has been identified by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department as Darren Sandberg.

The 15-year veteran was identified by the department Saturday morning, after he was named as the shooter Friday night on the San Clemente Patch.com news website, whose account cited sources who did not want to be identified.

Jim Amormino, spokesman for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, said Saturday that Sandberg has not returned to work since the Feb. 7 shooting. According to the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs, which represents 2,500 deputies, Sandberg served four years in the Marine Corps and has worked in the sheriff’s department for 15 years, earning two departmental honors.

In earlier statements, authorities said the deputy feared for the safety of Marine Sgt. Manuel Loggins’ daughters when he shot Loggins through the driver’s side window of his GMC Yukon. The girls, 14 and 9, were sitting in the backseat. They were not injured.

The shooting has baffled Loggins’ colleagues and friends, who described the 31-year-old as a disciplined Marine who respected authority and as a father figure and mentor to Marines who served with him.

The incident has prompted unprecedented public statements from the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs and from the commanding officer of Camp Pendleton.

The deputies’ union said a greater tragedy was averted by Sandberg and other deputies at the scene during the shooting. Union officials also said Sandberg has been recognized by the department, receiving two life-saving medals and one medal for courage.

Union officials and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said the deputy feared for the safety of the two girls when he fired his service weapon.

Authorities said Loggins was acting erratically and yelling irrational statements before climbing back into the SUV with his two daughters.

Officials first said the deputy feared for his own life, but later said the deputy feared for Loggins’ daughters.

Authorities with both the sheriff’s department and the union have declined to specify statements were made by Loggins or how the children’s lives were in danger.

“Imagine what would have possibly happened after all the things that happened, if Manuel Loggins was allowed to drive away with two children in the car, especially if something horrible happened to the children,” Tom Dominguez, president of the deputies’ union, said early last week. “A far bigger tragedy was averted due to the actions of the deputies that were there.”

Camp Pendleton’s commander, Col. Nicholas Marano issued a statement Thursday, criticizing the release of investigative details and the comments made about Loggins.

“Many of the statements made concerning Manny Loggins’ character over the past few days are incorrect and deeply hurtful to an already grieving family,” Marano said.

In January 2007, Sandberg and fellow deputy Kevin Geary were awarded a Medal of Valor for saving the life of 52-year-old Dan Patano, a motorcycle accident victim. On Jan. 16, 2006, the men were off-duty when they drove by Patano, who had crashed after the rear tire of his Suzuki Volusia blew out. The deputies cut the strap of the helmet to help him breathe better, but minutes after Mirando got there, Pantano stopped breathing.

Geary and Sandberg began doing CPR as an ambulance was heard in the distance. When one of the deputies began to remove Pantano’s shirt and jacket, a citizen stepped in and continued with the chest compressions. Paramedics took over and transferred him to the hospital.

“It was like everyone was at the right place at the right time, and it was rush hour,” Patano said. “God just had everyone in the right place.”

In April 2005, Sandberg, fellow deputy James Christian and officer Marie Chasco, were awarded a Medal of Courage for saving a man who was caught in a burning car. Also in 2005, Sandberg was recognized for work finding and detaining drivers under the influence by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, along with three other deputies.

In 1997 Sandberg and fellow deputy Todd Russ were recognized for performing CPR on an elderly heart-attack victim who later died.

In an interview Saturday, Mission Viejo Councilwoman Cathy Schlicht recalled Sandberg as courteous when he served as the sergeant-at-arms during the city’s council meetings.

“He was very professional,” she said. “He was a man doing his job.”

Schlicht had a cordial relationship with Sandberg, who for several years kept order at the council meetings, where oftentimes tempers flared.

“It’s a tough spot for the county to be in,” she said, referring to the officer-involved shooting. “Here we have a decorated long-term Marine and we have a 15-year veteran Orange County sheriff’s deputy and we have a lot of conflicting press releases. Everyone needs to take a step back and let the District Attorney Tony Rackauckas do his job.”

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